In offshore or subsea operations in drilling and controlling subsea well equipment, a control line which may be an electrical control line, but is generally a hydraulic control hose, extends from above the water to the subsea equipment in the water which may be hundreds of feet below the water surface. The vertically extending control line is supported at spaced intervals to a vertically extending support.
However, it has been a problem in the past to securely support the control hose from the vertical support. It is important that any hose clamp securely attached to both the vertical support and the control hose simultaneously. The hose clamp must not slip on either of the two. One additional problem is that the control line, in the case of a hydraulic control hose, is a bundle of hoses containing numerous pilot control lines and a larger power supply hose inside of a plastic sheath or jacket. If the hose clamp grips too tightly on the exterior of the control hose, the clamp may collapse a hose inside of the bundle and prevent its proper operation. On the other hand, if the hose clamp is too loose, the hose will slip and slide inside of the hose clamp and wear away the outer sheath on the bundle. Prior art hose clamps have neglected to consider the fact that the outer jacket of the control line as a source of the problem or the solution. The outer jacket is relatively slick and offers very little frictional resistance to slipping whether it is wet or dry.
The present invention is directed to a hose clamp which is capable of being attached very quickly to the hose and vertical support, will securely grip both the hose and support cable without slipping, but will not jeopardize the integrity of the control line.